Students invariably love this tale of a young Australian boy who, in drought conditions, saves the day after his father's horrific accident.

Because this is based on the popular novel by Colin Thiele, many students are drawn in immediately as they remember his writing and how much they enjoy it; for the teachers who use the novel in the classroom, it is a useful point of comparative study in how a novel is translated to film. Another area of particular interest is the film's portrayal of the lifestyle of an Australian child who lives in the outback.